When your dog feels anxious or fearful, you want to give your pup a sense of calm, safety, comfort, and happiness.
Most dogs have anxiety at some time, on some level. We've all been there... whether that means your usually-carefree dog who is thoroughly terrified by thunder and fireworks, our pup who trembles on every car ride, or dog who suffers with separation anxiety anytime you leave... or any one of a hundred ways our dogs can feel and express anxiety.
If that sounds like your pup, here are 6 of our favorites for anxious dogs, gifts to help make both your lives less stressed and more fun:
#1. Give your nervous or fearful pup the gift of all-natural calm with Mighty Calm Chews
We hear from so many dog parents looking for a natural way to calm your dogs amid everyday triggers so your dog can relax and learn everything really is okay. And so your dog can be reassured you've always got their back!
All of us here at Mighty Paw wanted the same thing for our crew of pups, too, with their range of personalities and reactions to stress. Which is why we worked with vets to create all-natural Mighty Calm Chews - for every dog parent and dog who could use more calm.
Why dog parents love Mighty Calm Chews
Thanks to a healthy combination of Mother Nature and science, these vet-formulated soft chews blend the natural calming power of melatonin, chamomile, and L-tryptophan to help relax our dogs. Each main ingredient is there for a reason, working to help your dog feel comfortable and at ease:
- Melatonin - known for promoting healthy sleep patterns; studies also show it can reduce anxiousness and promote relaxation
- Chamomile - encourages a sense of calmness in your pup as it calms nerves and reduces anxiousness
- L-tryptophan - an essential amino acid that helps create serotonin, a neurotransmitter known for promoting relaxation and helping to soothe fear, stress, and nervousness
The supporting cast of ingredients includes ginger and passionflower, both used for centuries as natural herbal support to encourage a normal anxiety and stress response, promote healthy sleep, and support the immune system.
These all-natural ingredients work together to help relax dogs who struggle with a range of stressors from separation to travel to noise to vet visit anxiety.
To give your dog a welcome sense of calm, check out Mighty Calm Chews here, and get back to enjoying life together with less stress, more fun!
#2. Help your dog relax the instinctively-soothing way: chewing, with the gift of Natural Yak Cheese Chews .
Fortunately, our dogs are genetically wired with some built-in self-soothers to help them de-stress and relax. Chewing, licking, and sniffing are all mentally stimulating and overall calming at the same time. If we give our pups good opportunities for all three, it can go a long way to keeping them mentally enriched and relaxed.
One of the favorite chews of many dog owners is our long-lasting Natural Yak Cheese Chews.
Why dog parents love all-natural Yak Cheese Chews
Of course, dog lovers love Natural Yak Cheese Chews because dogs love them. Don't be surprised if your dog is obsessed enough to be quietly occupied with gnawing away for hours. That's the soothing, calming part that fulfills your dog's instinct for self-comforting chewing.
But wait, there's more for your dog's nutrition and health.
You get to relax too, knowing exactly what's in our Yak Cheese Chews since they are limited-ingredient chews.That means only the good stuff, ingredients you recognize, nothing extra, unnatural, or mysterious:
- Made with only 3 ingredients - yak & cow milk, plus salt and lime juice to cure the chew and remove lactose - no added flavors or added anything
- Fully digestible, lactose-free, grain-free, gluten-free, chemical-free, preservative-free, mess-free, smell-free
- A wonderful option for pups with sensitive stomachs and allergies to chicken, beef, pork, or grain
- Long-lasting, totally edible, with a hard consistency great for teething puppies or power chewers!
- Rich in protein and calcium for healthy muscle growth and dental and bone health
- Once the yak chew is softened a bit by your dog's saliva, the chewiness is just right to help reduce tartar and plaque build-up on your dog's teeth and gums. (And freshening doggie breath in the process.)
Since our cheese sticks are a limited-ingredient, natural treat, they’re a great alternative to potentially dangerous bleached rawhide dog chews.
Pro Tip: Don’t waste the end piece!
After your dog chews down the yak chew to a short end piece that's too small to hold and chew, take it away and turn it into a perfect treat. Soak it in water for 5 minutes, then microwave it for 45-60 seconds. (You can check out our how-to video here.) Ta-da! - a delicious, crunchy cheese puff your pup will love!
Find all the details on Yak Cheese Chews here, and give your pup a delicious way to enjoy the zen of chewing.
#3. Give your pup the gift of endless enrichment with a Lick Pad and Lick Bowl
Licking is another natural instinct in dogs. It's one of their big 3 self-soothers (like chewing and sniffing). Studies show that licking releases endorphins in a dog's brain, helping them feel calmer and more relaxed. Licking is good for all dogs but especially good for our nervous or fearful dogs.
Why pet owners love Mighty Paw’s Dog Lick Bowl
For starters, it's a 100% BPA-free, food-grade silicone dog bowl so it's completely safe for your dog to lick and eat from...
- You can either smear soft foods like peanut butter, yogurt, pumpkin purée or cottage cheese onto the textured side
- OR use it as a slow-feed bowl with your pup’s wet or raw dog food.
Veterinarians and behaviorists recommend mental enrichment as an important tool in helping anxious and bored dogs. That's why our Dog Lick Bowl is designed to engage your dog's brain, featuring 2 different modes (stable & wobbly) as well as 4 different textures (easy, fun, stress relief, & distraction) to match your pup’s needs:
- Use it in stable inside-out mode with the different textures on the outside for a quick training reward or as an enriching snack.
- Use it in wobble mode with the different textures on the inside to distract your dog from stressful situations like thunderstorms and fireworks. This mode also works as a boredom-buster that reduces destructive behavior in between walks or when you’re busy!
- Dental health bonus: when your pup licks our Dog Lick Bowl, your dog gets more than stress relief and fun. It also promotes healthier gums and teeth as well as fresher breath!
And we designed our Dog Lick Bowl with dishwasher-safe silicone to make cleaning it a breeze for every dog owner who would rather be hanging out with their dog than bowl-scrubbing. Just pop it into the dishwasher once your pup is done licking or rinse it off easily in the sink.
Why pet parents love Mighty Paw’s Dog Lick Pad
We listened to dog behaviorists and trainers when we designed our Mighty Paw Dog Lick Pad as well, making it with 4 uniquely textured quadrants that offer varying degrees of difficulty:
- Use the Easy quadrant for quick training rewards...
- The Fun quadrant as a boredom buster and slow feeder
- The Anxiety Relief quadrant as a stress reliever
- And the Distraction quadrant to keep your dog busy for a while.
Unlike many other food mats, our Mighty Paw Dog Lick Pad features strong suction cups for the ultimate hold however you're using it. It's perfect on walls, shower tiles, or the side of the tub, making bath time and grooming sessions super easy and stress-free.
Or just put the pad on the floor anytime and your pup will be busy trying to get to all the food you smeared on it. You can rely on our Lick Pad to engage your dog during thunderstorms, fireworks, training sessions, bathing and grooming, or any other time you need a distraction or fun food reward for your pup.
And since licking automatically cleans your dog's tongue and gums, your dog is getting the benefit of better breath and overall dental health at the same time!
To give your dog all the calming, enriching, fun benefits of licking, find all the details on the Lick Pad and Lick Bowl here.
#4. Treat your pup to safe and designed-for-dogs Bark'n Butter Peanut Butter .
Is there a dog who doesn't LOVE peanut butter? As much as every dog mom and dad loves giving pups peanut butter, there's always that worry about unhealthy additives or ingredients in the fine print like frighteningly toxic xylitol or even everyday sugar we don't want to give our dogs.
Bark'n Butter Peanut Butter is made for dogs with just one simple, all-natural ingredient - premium-grade, roasted peanuts. That's it! No added sugar, salt, xylitol, or preservatives.
Why dog parents love Bark'n Butter
Every dog lover loves the no-worries, unqualified joy of giving dogs something they're so flat-out joyous about. Even better when you know Bark'n Butter is a super useful partner in giving your stressed or fearful dog chewing and licking opportunities for self-soothing:
- Slather it on your lick pad or in your lick bowl for some healthy enrichment and a fun way to de-stress.
- Or use it to fill your dog's favorite "stuffable" dog toys, on a chew toy, or as a training treat
The single ingredient in Bark'n Butter - peanuts - is packed with essential nutrients, making it a healthful addition to your dog's diet. Plus, it's easy to digest, making it a great option for dogs with sensitive stomachs or dietary restrictions as well as all dog breeds and ages.
Check out Bark'n Butter Peanut Butter here, and give your dog the best gift of peanut butter every pet parent can feel happy about - almost as crazy happy as your pup!
#5. Give your dog the gift of Cow Kneecap Chews for some meaty chewing relaxation
Pair the relaxation effect of chewing with an instinctive love for real meat and bone, and you get one engaged and happy dog. And that's the simple recipe behind our Cow Kneecap Chews - 100% what they are, single-ingredient, high-quality cow kneecaps. We realize "cow kneecaps" might not sound overly appealing to you, but your dog will be obsessed at first sight... and sniff and taste.
Why dog parents love Cow Kneecap Chews
Your dog will be thrilled and distracted from stresses which is reason enough to love our Cow Kneecap Chews. But you can feel great about all the ways they support your dog:
- Naturally rich in protein to help keep your dog strong
- Since our cow kneecaps are never treated with nasty chemicals, you can feel good about spoiling your dog with a healthy, relaxing chew your pup naturally craves. (On a related note, they're a wonderful alternative to bleached rawhide containing toxic chemicals.)
- Our kneecap bones come with the meat attached to elevate your dog’s chewing enjoyment. When your pup has chewed the meat off, the knee cap becomes a stress-busting, long-lasting chew bone.
- They're 100% grass-fed, free-range sourced, so they're grain free, gluten free, lactose free, and chemical free.
- As 100% beef with no added anything, kneecaps are a great option for your furry friend with chicken, lamb, pork, fish or grain allergies.
Check out our Cow Kneecap Chews here and give your dog a great gift and natural way to enjoy the 100% beefy bones dogs love.
#6. Treat your pup to the gift of a classic chew made healthful: all-natural Bully Sticks
For all dogs and especially anxious dogs, you can never have too many chewing options to take advantage of your dog's love of chewing and the beneficial effects of mental stimulation and anxiety relief. Bully sticks are a classic dog chew, beloved by just about every dog.
We've taken them up a notch with our all-natural Bully Sticks, making them 100% single-ingredient, 100% healthy chewing for your dog.
Why dog parents love Bully Sticks
You can relax and feel great about giving your dog our Naturals Bully Sticks, since we've figured out all the important, healthful details so you won't have to:
- They're sourced from grass-fed, free-range beef in Columbia and are hand-inspected and packaged with love in our HQ here in Rochester, NY
- Made with only one single ingredient - beef pizzle. No added flavors, no added anything.
- Fully digestible, protein-rich, grain-free, gluten-free, chemical-free, preservative-free, and mess-free/low-odor for you
- Perfect for dogs with sensitive stomachs and allergies to chicken, lamb, pork, fish or grain
- Bonus: bully sticks soften with exposure to your dog’s saliva, encouraging chewing with a little give to it which reduces tartar and plaque buildup, almost the dog version of flossing (A nice plus for dogs who aren't big fans of teeth brushing regularly!)
- Like all our chews, a healthy alternative to potentially dangerous, bleached rawhide dog chews
For all the details, check out our all-natural Bully Sticks here, and give your pup the perfect gift of a long-lasting, relaxing chewfest.
Enjoy giving your dog any or all of these 6 (actually 7) great gifts for dogs to work separately and together to help your dog have a normal stress response and raise the comfort level. So both of you can relax and have more fun and adventures together!
As always at Mighty Paw, our commitment is to provide dog parents with high-quality products that are safe, durable, and practical for everyday use. From outdoor adventures to snuggles on the couch, we've got you covered.
